Is it possible to overfeed your T's?

Zman181 · Jul 3, 2010

My slings eat almost daily. Their abdomens are very big for their size. Here is are just 2 of my fat slings. 1st in the light resistant vial is a New River Rust Rump and the other is a Mexican Red Knee.

Versi*JP*Color · Jul 3, 2010

Don't feed daily, feed weekly.
If you keep it up they get fatter and POP.

x Mr Awesome x · Jul 3, 2010

SpyderBoy606 said:
Don't feed daily, feed weekly.
If you keep it up they get fatter and POP.

^^^ What?!?! Uh no you can feed it until it refuses food. Then it will molt. Then you can feed it until it refuses food. Then it will molt. Then you can...

Zman181 · Jul 3, 2010

Thanks.... i figured that.

Versi*JP*Color · Jul 3, 2010

I mean like when you feed it way too much
ex:when a sling gets a 12 inch butt

It's healthier too feed weekly.

Miss Bianca · Jul 3, 2010

I like to feed my slings twice a week, but once a week is definitely healthier than every day.
I have an obese murinus, who is fed as much as his siblings,
but is fatter than them all. I also have another I'm feeding alot.
The case with that one is he's missing two legs and a pedipalp.
(He's fine though! Appetite's awesome.)

I also fed an L. parahybana once so much because it was that appetite
was amazing!
It molted , ate once 12 days later, and fasted for about a month, after which he found himself in premolt again. Shiny black bottom and everything.
I do think tarantulas can be fed too much.
Once or twice a week is good for any specimen in my book, feeding adequately sized prey.

proper_tea · Jul 3, 2010

I've heard that Ts can be overfed, but I've never actually seen evidence of it. I mean, certainly they become less agile... but it's not like I've had one die as a result. If mine get to the point where they're nice and fat, they'll usually start eating less frequently... even if they're not pre-molt. If a T starts refusing food, I'll take it out, and if it doesn't look like the T is on the verge of molting, I'll try again in a week. Frequently they'll eat again then. From what I've found, most Ts will pig out post molt for a little while, and then settle into a more reasonable amount of eating.

hermzxd45 · Jul 3, 2010

Is it really bad to overfeed? Cause i got a g. Pulchripes thats about 3 inches female and she loves to eat sometimes she eats like 4 crickets a day. For like the past week... Everyday...

PhobeToPhile · Jul 4, 2010

I would call that overfeeding. Waaaayyyyy too much. Pulchripes are not L. parahybanas or Theraposa sp. Don't think there's been any study of it, but I would imagine that truly obese spiders would have to suffer SOME health consequences as a result...like maybe difficulty molting properly or righting themselves (particularly the later).

hassman789 · Jul 4, 2010

A spider with a very large abdomen would probably be in alot of danger from the risk of him just rubbing it on somthing and it popping. So dont feed it TOO much!

TalonAWD · Jul 4, 2010

I feed slings everyday and some even twice a day but keep them at really warm temps to speed up their digestion (80-85F). This in turns gets them to molt quick. I never had a problem. They know their limits. Just know that with a huge abdomen, theres more risk of it "popping" as one member put it it if was to fall from a height. So if you plan on having fat blimps with legs, make sure the substrate to ceiling height is restricted to prevent falls.

After they get to 3" I stop this endless buffet.

Mack&Cass · Jul 4, 2010

Just because a spider will eat every day doesn't mean you have to feed it every day.

Cass

xhexdx · Jul 4, 2010

Mack&Cass said:
Just because a spider will eat every day doesn't mean you have to feed it every day.

Cass

Ditto this.

It's unnecessary and is (in my opinion) not worth the risk.

Not to mention there have already been countless threads on overfeeding - run a search (or just scroll to the bottom of this thread and look at the suggestions) to see past debates. This topic has been beaten to death, then beaten some more.

AmbushArachnids · Jul 4, 2010

It really is up to you on how much you feed. i have a 3" B. boehmei that i fed until its butt was soo huge. eventually she just stopped eating and went premolt for 3 weeks. gained 1" in a single molt.I love how it makes them grow alot in one molt.

I am not sure how it affects there length of life but if you want a big T then feed feed feed. specialy if you plan on raising them to breed.

there is always a risk of falling when there really fat and being injured. house them accordingly and they will be fine.

keeping them at ambient 85-95 really helps growth. I took temps of my slings at 95 air temp. they were only 85 infared body temp. Slow growers native to southern states do very well in higher temps.

TalonAWD · Jul 4, 2010

agentd006las said:
keeping them at ambient 85-95 really helps growth. I took temps of my slings at 95 air temp. they were only 85 infared body temp. Slow growers native to southern states do very well in higher temps.

The highest I have gone was 92F. Thats a good idea with the infrared gun to take their body temps. I have heard that whatever temps is ambient their body temps are usually a bit lower but never tried to seek truth to this. thanks for the info. I have to try this with my nephews heat gun on a really hot day.

Oh and +1 on your post

winwin · Jul 4, 2010

I have an A. Genic that I fed around every other day, food item is around the same size as abdomen, it molted and well the difference wasn't too big. Then I tried feeding it as much as it wanted to eat, 2x or 3x a day until it starts refusing food, well this time when she molted, the difference was huge. It's an sling and I'm not sure if it is just coincidence or feeding more does make a difference in molt-molt size gains.

x Mr Awesome x · Jul 4, 2010

It makes a huge difference. Like Steve, I too powerfeed until the specimen is of a nice size with adult coloration. I don't like looking at pink baby spiders. The only consequence to powerfeeding beyond the three inch size is rushing the t through it's life cycle. It will mature faster and as a result probably expire sooner than a non-powerfed specimen would if every other variable were the same. Totally depends on your goals. If I have a male t and a breeding project to look forward to I will powerfeed to maturity and same goes for a female. Personally I have never seen an obese premolt t climb. In my experience terrestrials will become considerably more obese than an arboreal if given the opportunity. Of course, I keep smaller arboreals in vials. I've never had an adult arboreal get anywhere near as massive as a sling or juvenile even if I try. Adults don't have the appetite of a growing sling. I have never heard of a t 'popping' from eating too much. If there's evidence of this I'd sure like to see it.

Crows Arachnids · Jul 4, 2010

Please elaborate.

xhexdx said:
Ditto this.

It's unnecessary and is (in my opinion) not worth the risk.

Not to mention there have already been countless threads on overfeeding - run a search (or just scroll to the bottom of this thread and look at the suggestions) to see past debates. This topic has been beaten to death, then beaten some more.

I looked at the suggestions, nothing concrete. I too have never seen a tarantula pop due to overfeeding, I believe that they know their limit. Can you define risk (in your estimation as it varies) for me, thanks my friend.

AmbushArachnids · Jul 4, 2010

TalonAWD said:
The highest I have gone was 92F. Thats a good idea with the infrared gun to take their body temps. I have heard that whatever temps is ambient their body temps are usually a bit lower but never tried to seek truth to this. thanks for the info. I have to try this with my nephews heat gun on a really hot day.

Oh and +1 on your post

thanks and your welcome. i like your vids on making enclosures, very informative and well thought out. I am debating on if i should get a xenethis immanis or get some of those rare slings you have for sale.. PM me with a price for 3 of them.

Hobo · Jul 4, 2010

Here's a semi-relavent thread to this topic.
The pictures don't seem to be working, but you can see 'em here. Just keep clicking the next pic to see 'em all. (they're graphic!)

Though it likely wasn't overeating that caused it, it does show that having an exceptionally large abdomen could possibly cause some real damage.

Besides, a larger abdomen, as already stated, would increase the risk of injuries due to falls.

I myself "powerfed" my slings, but I learned to keep them within reason, and stopped when their abdomens became a little larger than their carapace. I suspect a lot of keepers that practice "powerfeeding" do the same.

Is it possible to overfeed your T's?

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